The Silver Isles
by A Dragon Guarded Heart
Summary: (secret organization AU) Professor Black I the only one that can get near the PTDC's most dangerous, and so far only surviving, subject. but what does this draconian see in him? Why does she only allow him to rip out her teeth for testing without biting off his hand? And does Professor Black feel anything in return for her kindness, or was it just mercy?


Pitch scrunched up his nose in disgust as he strolled past the array of cages. Various smells drafted from the enclosures, most of them very unpleasant the cause of these odors being test subjects that were dead and rotting.

The letters PTDC were all marked on the cages. Preliminary Testing of Dangerous Creatures, that was the company he worked for. They wanted to find an anti-venom to prevent other supernaturals from being created, but their studies have moved onto crueler methods as we begin looking for ways to make Super Soldiers with several Supernaturals' abilities and none of the weaknesses.

It definitely wasn't a job for a weak man, he didn't know how many times he had been bit and lacerated. They weren't allowed to have a weak mind either, the experiments were cruel and the scientists had to be merciless and unyielding. He stopped walking and turned to the front of a cage, their most unruly and so far only surviving test subject hissed threateningly.

He sighed, "can you just behave yourself for once or do I need to sedate you?"

She grinned her razor teeth, her voice low and sarcastic, "I don't know, can you not be such an uncharismatic stick in the mud?"

Pitch snorted, "have you taken your medicine?"

She snorted back, "the one that won't let me breathe fire? Yea, I took it."

"Good. Now, I'm here to retrieve another tooth, scale, and nail."

She glared at him.

Pitch pulled a long syringe out of his pocket, "stay still."

A snarl started to bubble up in her throat but she cut it short, if she wanted to stay awake she'd have to be nice, "Please don't..." she somewhat groaned, "I'll behave just, please don't knock me out again..."

He rolled his eyes, "fine, but one snarl and I put you under."

She gave a curt nod.

Pitch kneeled in front of her cage and got out his tools.

She scooted towards the front of the cage, the chains around her ankles rattling behind her.

"Scale first"

She raised her tail and flexed it, multiple long scales becoming erect like a club full of spikes. Easily snapping one off she slid it through the bars.

He pulled out a pair of heavy duty clippers, "now the nail."

She stuck her hand through the bars with a blank expression as he cut her talon.

Pitch pulled out a pair of pliers and muttered, "this will be interesting."

She gripped the bars, bracing herself, "pull out a canine, they grow back fastest." She opened up her mouth wide, her white teeth gleaming in the dim light.

Pitch clamped the pliers around the tooth and pressed his foot against the bars. He prepped to pull, "Ready?"

A low "uhuh" escaped her throat and she readied to pull back as well.

"One. Two. Three!" They both pulled and the tooth snapped out of her skull sending them reeling backwards.

Pitch fell on his butt, amazed at the force it actually took to remove it. He looked up and watched as she pounded the ground with a fist along with her tail twisting and curling in pain.

"Grr...dammit that hurt.."

"Your the one that didn't want to be sedated." he deadpanned.

She grinned at him, blood coating her teeth. "Smartass."

"Idiot." Pitch stood up and started walking off.

"Later Pitch."

"As always 171."

She pouted, "I have a name."

"I know" he replied.

"dick" she mumbled.

He rounded a corner, "I heard that."

She snorted, a smile gracing her lips.

Pitch walked into the lab, ignoring the stares from his coworkers. It seemed like a miracle every time he returned from examining her. It was almost comical. He was the only person that she would let come near her, if anyone else tried they'd lose a hand.

He placed his various items under the scanner, marveling at how her tooth stayed white and sharp after all these years.. Pitch shrugged, he expected nothing less than that of her.

A scrawny professor padded over to him and spoke in a quiet voice, "so-so how was the draconian? Has it weakened at all?"

Pitch snorted, "she has not weakened at all. The pills successfully repress her flame but that is about it."

"Drat. We've had that thing here for almost three years now and she hasn't stopped fighting us. This is getting ridiculous." He cleared his throat and turned to Pitch, "thank you for examining her profesor Black, we appreciate the threat you face because of it."

"Mhm" he grumbled. After the other man left Pitch snickered at the thought of the first day she was brought in.

He had only recently started working there, so he was less than calm when she was rolled in. Strapped to a vertical gertie was a writhing mass of scales and skin. She looked human but at the same time nothing like one. She had black horns that stuck out of her blue tipped black hair as well as black spines that traveled from her head to her tail. She had sharp claws instead of normal fingernails and two large wings protruding from her back. The scales that coated various parts of her body were a light blue, and she wore a tattered tank top and a small pair of shorts.

He was awestruck. Caught in the middle of thinking she was beautiful or being afraid of her. He chose the latter as her smoldering yellow eyes locked with his, and heard the snarl she made through the metal gag that covered her mouth. He wanted to take cover as it looked like it could melt any second by how red hot it was becoming. Pitch watched as various scientists jabbed sedatives in her, it took about five to finally put her under.

After performing dozens of tests on her and taking multiple samples of her blood and other body tissues he was selected to give her the behavioral test when she woke up, punishment for being the new guy he guessed.

Slowly walking down the hall to her large cage he tried to keep his composure; considering his hand wouldn't leave the syringe in his pocket it wasn't going too well. As he got closer he heard a loud banging sound. Peeking his head around the wall he saw her smashing her gag against the ground.

He paled as he saw one of the hinges break and the gag hanging on the side of her face.

She coughed and hacked what looked like molten lava onto the floor. She spat out a final hunk of embers then looked up at the front of the cage. "I know you're there. You humans aren't exactly stealthy."

He jumped at the sound of her voice, he hadn't expected her to be able to talk. "We were stealthy enough to catch you weren't we?"

She snarled, "you fought dirty. Barreling me with gas and nets and tranquilizers." She snorted out a puff of smoke and glared at the wall.

A few moments of heavy silence passed before she snapped at him. "What are you still doing here!?"

Pitch remembered why he was here, he replied strongly "I have to preform a behavioral analysis."

"I'm pissed. There, done. Goodbye." She thrashed against the cuffs binding her wrists behind her back. She pulled and fought for freedom endlessly till hopeless tears formed in her eyes and scarlet blood dripped from the cuffs. He felt his insides knot as she gritted her teeth and hung her head.

It was a look of defeat. In his younger days he wore that look many times.

Her voice brought him back to reality. "Why am I here?"

Her voice sounded broken, even though she tried to hide it.

He fed her the line they were supposed to tell the subjects that could talk. "You are here because we need to further our research on extraordinary creatures and their possible use and or weaponization."

"You humans are all the same" she sneered. "All you care about is being the most powerful thing around. Tell me something. What good is having power if you can't use it to protect the ones you love?"

His eyes fell, "I don't have any. Not anymore." Her snarl faded as he continued. "They were taken from me. I couldn't protect them and they perished. I have nothing now. Nothing to protect, nothing to fight for, nothing to lose. That's why I'm here. They offered me this job for that precise reason." He sighed, "so if I died then..it wouldn't really matter..."

She sat up straight, "wouldn't matter? Is that what you really think?" Pitch raised his head at the sound of her voice, marbled by the now softer tone, "look, while you might think that you're not loved that does not change the fact that your life has meaning. Every life is important, someone very close to me taught me that, the hard way." She growled, "so don't go dying like an idiot on me just yet human."

Pitch was caught between being irritated and touched, but he worked better with anger. "That's not my name." he growled.

"Fine, tell me your name and I'll tell you mine."

"It's Pitch."

She grinned, "hello Pitch, my name is Silver. It's not nice meeting you."

He snorted, "likewise."

Through the years they had achieved sort of a give and take relationship. He had taken the cuffs off her wrists and she in turn didn't bite his hand off. Mixed in with almost friendly insults their company went rather well.

Pitch chuckled, he was the only one that could examine her, anyone else came back with multiple cuts and maybe a lost hand. Most of the other scientists didn't believe that she could talk, she never spoke to anyone but him. Pitch looked over at the small group of scientists that were making a ruckus. He shrugged it off and went back to entering his data into the computer.

Footsteps woke her from a light sleep. Silver raised her head at the sound of multiple humans coming her way. Tensing her muscles she backed away as far as her restraints would let her. She paled when they came into her vision. They were wearing gas masks, oh no.

Milky white gas shot out of containers and into her cage, Silver held her breath but that didn't stop its effects. She felt pain shoot though her body wherever the gas touched and numbness quickly followed. Fighting the battle to move but quickly losing her body fell limp to the floor. She glared and snarled as they unchained her and carried her off into another room.

The room was large and mostly white and a long table sat in its center; the small array of men strapped her body to the table. Panic rose in her stomach as they all left the room. She hated being alone. It was one of her biggest fears, she prayed they didn't know that.

But she wasn't kept waiting long.

Teslacoils made their appearance along the walls and shot lightning straight for her. Screams tore from her throat as white hot electricity seared through her veins, while she was left immobile they still wanted to hear her scream. After a few agonizing seconds passed the lightning stopped. Her ragged breathing only brought the smell of burnt scales and flesh into her nostrils. She felt the pain everywhere. Hell it felt like her teeth were burnt!

Lightning erupted from the coils and hit the mark on her body again. This time it felt more painful, and she fought to choke back her screams but didn't succeed for long. This process continued for what felt like hours until the intensity was maximized as high as it could go.

Silver screamed like the day her family was ripped from her, the day those humans attacked her valley, the day that she was truly left alone. Tears fell from her eyes but no farther quickly evaporating on her cheeks. Her vision was already fading to black as they cut off the lightning. She heard fading shouts and among them picked out Pitch's voice. "help..." The world fell from her lips as she succumbed to the darkness pulling her under.

Pitch seethed in rage as he backed the professor known as Clyde into a corner, "WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING!? WERE YOU TRYING TO KILL OUR ONLY SURVIVING TEST SUBJECT!?"

The small professor tried to get a word in but pitches voice quickly cut him off. "You better pray to whatever god you believe in that she's not dead or you'll be the one strapped to that table next." The scientist cowered under Pitch's superior height and quickly exited the room like the others did when Pitch stormed in. His golden eyes followed the man out and Pitch quickly turned on his heel to enter the room that Silver was in. He strode up next to her and placed his head over her heart. When the steady sound of a strong heartbeat filled his ears he released a sigh of relief. Undoing the straps over her body he lifted her into his arms and carried her out the door.

While he did have a slender frame he was not weak by any means, which in this case was a good this cause she was kinda heavy...

Finally reaching the door to her cage Pitch lightly set her down against a wall. He moved a hair out of her face but quickly regretted the action. The back of his hand brushing against the small scales of her face reminded him of his mistake.

He had fallen for her, but that was not acceptable. He did not calculate that. His calculations were never wrong but it seems that this time he had overlooked a variable. He had never figured that their relationship would develop past their agreement not to kill each other. He had never thought he'd come to care about her like this...

Pitch fastened the chains around her feet and walked out of the cage, he knew there would be hell waiting for him but in reality he had no idea of the consequences awaiting him.

Silver winced as she came to, pain laced her body and she was still fighting to move. She growled low in her throat as control started to come back, all she could do was move her hands and feet right now but she was slowly gaining movement.

The image of that day in the valley was burned into her mind, it was the first thing she saw when she woke up in the morning and always the last image before her dreams in the evening, and she remembered it all like it was yesterday.

Still young, about seven or so, she had next to no knowledge on fighting. So when the barrel of a gun was inches from her nose she had no idea what to do. Staring into the hardened eyes of a person with no wings or a tail she was frozen in fear. Her father, Claudius, barreled into the person in front of her his body shaking in anger and adrenaline. He stabbed a sword into their stomach and then whirled on Silver, "Go to the Gemstone cave! Your mother and I will meet you there!" Hesitating to run her father yelled at her again, "GO! And don't look back!" Tears fell as she turned and ran. The sound of her father yelling her mothers name cut through all the other screaming but she kept running. Diving into the ocean she swam towards the secret underwater cave. Surfacing inside she sat on the smooth ground, her tail and wings curled around her in fear. Hours passed and still no one came. Summoning up the only courage she had left silver slinked out of the cave and swam up to the valleys shoreline, what she saw made her blood run cold.

Bodies. So many of them. All covered in blood. There were none left alive. She slowly weaved through the carnage until her eyes fell on a black tail.

It was her mothers...

Her fathers dark blue body was protectively draped over her shadow colored mothers. Multiple bullet wounds laced his back. Her father, in his final moments, did everything he could to protect his family. She heard yelling in the distance accompanied by the loud whirr of engines.

With tears streaming down her face Silver turned from her parents bodies and ran. Never look back he had said. Disappearing into the depths of the sea Silver honored her fathers wish.

Fading back to reality she wiped her face with her now fully mobile arm. She smelled Pitch all over her, he probably carried her she reasoned.

Silvers head snapped up at the sound of a large crash. She almost shrugged it off but the faint smell of blood filled her nose, and it was Pitch's.

Snarling she thrashed against the chains of her feet. She struggled to raise her body temperature so that she could breathe fire but those pills she took lowered her temperature and softened her tongue. Heat was the way that their stomach knew to produce gas and the rough edge of their tongue flicked against the rock at the roof of their mouth was the only way they could create a spark to light the gas in their stomach. She dug her nails into the ground and curled in on herself, concentrating the heat in her body into the pit of her stomach. As her body temperature climbed the sound of a pained yell pushed her over the edge. With gas rising in her throat she broke apart her floor and placed a long piece of steel against the roof of her mouth. She tensed herself then drug the rock against her mouth in one fluid motion.

Flames shot from her mouth and turned the bars of the cage white hot quickly melting a hole in the cage. Body still hot she repeated the process and melted the chains on her feet.

Barreling out of the cage she sped on all fours towards the scent of his blood.

Pitch shouted in pain as he was thrown back against a wall, hands grabbing his shoulders before he could hit the floor. Blood flowed from his nose due to the hit he had taken earlier. The Professor Clyde stood in front of Pitch and the two large scientists restraining him, "you were too concerned with subject 171s well being. You have been the only one to examine it without injury for the last few years. We have suspicions. We believe that you have become too attached to this creature, and we can't have that now can we?"

Pitch growled as the small man pulled a gun out of the drawer of his desk and aimed it his direction. "Don't worry" he smirked, "this'll only hurt for a second."

Their attention was stolen by the door being broken down. Silvers snarling form crashed into the room and her eyes quickly focused on the gun in the mans hand. Eyes burning with rage she leaped forward and snatched it out of his hand in her teeth. Skidding to a stop she turned and crushed the gun in her jaws, their fear filled eyes making her predatory instinct swell.

Lunging forward she whipped her tail into the small mans stomach sending him flying. The two men, long having let go of Pitch, struggled to find a weapon but she didn't give them the chance. She drove her head into one mans gut and uppercutted his chin. She whirled and roundhouse kicked the other one's jaw. Dropping to the floor in a crouch she lunged for the small scientist and picked up his terror stricken frame by the throat. Sweat laced his body as their eyes locked, her sterling eyes burning with bloodlust.

Sliver snorted and she threw his body against the wall, hard enough to knock out but not to kill. She turned an eye towards Pitch. While she couldn't read his expression she knew it wasn't without fear. She knew what to do. it had to be done, but she wouldn't be able to forgive herself afterwards.

She lunged at him and swung a claw at his torso, cutting deep enough to bleed but restrained enough so that it wouldn't bleed heavy enough to be life threatening. Pitch yelled in pain and sunk to the floor clutching his wound. Silver smashed the alarm and sirens started going off. Grabbing a handful of sedating syringes she started jabbing them in various places on her body.

"What are you doing!?" Pitch shouted.

She bent down and placed a syringe gently in his palm, his flinch at her movements cutting her deeper than any sword could. As she fell to the ground at his feet she struggled to speak, "keeping my part of the deal. I said I wasn't gonna let you die on me didn't i?" She smiled, "stupid human..." Silver breathed as she passed out.

Pitch sat there speechless, absolutely confounded by the actions that Silver had taken. "Why did she?" Several weapon clad men burst into the room shouting and causing a ruckus. They went straight for Silvers unconscious form, rapidly handcuffing and gagging her. One of the men in the black uniforms kneeled next to him, "Professor Black are you alright?"

When Pitch didn't answer the man he started to analyze the cuts in his chest. "You're a lucky man Black. That thing just barley cut past the skin, I think that your shirt is done for though."

Pitch didn't laugh at his feeble attempt at humor.

The man quickly recovered and bowed his head to Pitch. "We are all very grateful for what you did. Even more so that you escaped with your life. Sedating that beast was a feat that none of us could have ever hoped to accomplish. On behalf of the entire PTDC we give you our thanks."

Pitch's voice was low and threatening, "instead of groveling at my feet like the pathetic dog you are why don't you make yourself useful and tend to the other scientists that were injured far worse than I was."

The man shrunk back in fear and quickly left to carry out Pitch's orders, and with the distraction gone Pitch returned his eyes to Silvers body. He turned his head just in time to get a glimpse of the men carrying her out, her body littered with chains and restraints.

Pitch felt his insides twist into knots, her actions finally made sense to him.

She had made it seem like he was the one that sedated her. She placed the syringe in his hand and had passed out at his feet. The hand over his wound tightened. "And she had to make it believable..." He didn't think he could feel his heart hurt more than it had in the past but, it did. It hurt thinking how Silver did all of this for him. She had saved his life, she kinda did twice technically...and he couldn't do anything for her.

Pitch let out a defeated sigh and got up to leave the room. He thought about going to see Silver but he decided against it. He was too disgusted with his weakness to face her. Pitch slinked to bed, a feeling of self loathing making his once proud head hang low.

Silver sat in her cell, wanting to tear herself apart more than study the bolts on the wall of her new cell. She hated herself for what she did, the smell of his blood just wouldn't leave her claws. She sighed, the muzzle around her mouth muffling it to a mere move of her shoulders.

Shackled up like the time they first brought her to this place she never wanted to curl up and die more than she did right now.

"Why did you do that?"

She looked up with a glare that said 'are you really that stupid?' Partially because she couldn't talk but also because the reason was painfully obvious.

Pitch sighed, "you...you made me out...to be the hero...and...and you...had to do this" he unbuttoned part of his shirt and exposed the long red claw marks that marred his otherwise perfect skin.

Silvers eyes trailed over the marks, the scarlet scratches feeling like they were cutting into her skin instead of his.

Her eyes moved back to his as he buttoned his shirt back up and continued, "and now you're chained up like this..." Pitch started to lose his composure, "I don't I understand...why?...why would you save my life... If you knew yours would be taken." He slammed his hands against the bars, "WHY!?" He was becoming chocked up, his voice breaking and quivering. "You painted yourself as the monster they think you are! That's not true! You're not like that! So why...why would you act like it? So that I would live and become the hero that saved everyone from the vicious beast!? I didn't...you never really hurt anyone...I don't understand...why did you do it all?"

Pitch looked into her eyes, desperately looking for some kind of answer to his questions.

Silver wished she could say something, anything, but she couldn't figure out how.

Pitch's anger flared, "answer me!"

Silver closed her eyes and hung her head in shame, she couldn't bear to look him in the eyes any longer.

Pitch looked like a kid whose dad had just walked out the door, but he erased the vulnerable expression quickly. "Fine," he spat, "enjoy solitude." Pitch stormed off out of her vision. Silver looked up with pain filled tears in her eyes, "I'm sorry...I'm so so sorry..." The single thought was the only thing that travelled through her mind as she let silent tears run down her face.

Pitch stormed back to his room and threw himself onto his bed, no one would care if he didn't show up today and he really didn't have any energy left after this morning. He honestly didn't expect to fall asleep but a few hours later he woke up to the insseccent poking of his shoulder and calling of his name.

"What?" He snapped. A smirk spread across his face as his open eye saw a tall and scrawny professor almost fall backwards in surprise.

"Uh um, I've been sent to debrief you on the new security measures that will be taking place ass well as what has been decided about our issue with subject 171, the Draconian."

The word "decided" didn't sit well with Pitch but he concealed it for the moment. "Alright, get on with it then."

The man cleared his throat, "we will each be provided two bodyguards for when we examine the subjects and the number of security officials here at the base will be increased by thirty percent."

"It's going to become disgustingly lively in here..." Pitch thought.

The man continued, "as for subject 171, a decision has been reached. After the events of yesterday we cannot risk underestimating her power again, so come tomorrow evening after our increased security arrives subject 171 will be euthanized."

Pitch noted the way the man hovered, expecting something. He chuckled, "What? Are you expecting a medal? Some praise maybe? For simply repeating information that was given to you earlier? Congratulations you're as intelligent as a parrot now get out of my sight."

The professor yelped, "ye-yes sir!" he scurried away.

Pitch let out a long sigh, everything finally coming into focus. " _They're going to kill her...Silver is going to die._ "

" _No. There must be something I can do..._ "

She must admit, she didn't really expect Pitch to be at her cage at this ungodly hour. She was NOT a morning person. Silver shot him a lazy glare for waking her up, her current situation already making it hard enough to sleep.

Pitch whispered, "Silver. Silver you need to get out of here."

" _No shit Sherlock."_

When Silver didn't react Pitch let out the urgency in his voice that he had been concealing, "Silver they're going to kill you, you're...you're going to die..." He gripped the bars in desperation. But Silver's expression still didn't change. Pitch snarled, "dammit don't just sit there!" He pulled the keys out of his pocket and rapidly opened the door. Kneeling next to her he began to unlock the chains around her body, not noticing that Silver still hadn't moved. After freeing her wings he ripped off her gag, "now say something!"

Silver looked him right in the eyes, "this is pointless."

Pitch looked like he had been slapped, but his shock was replaced by anger. He snarled and pulled her up by the arm. Wether she wanted to or not he was getting her out of here.

Pitch sprinted down the halls dragging Silver along behind him. All that was heard between them was the clicking of footsteps as they ran. They didn't really speak, Pitch was too focused and she didn't know what to say.

Silver abruptly pulled him too a stop clamping her hand over his mouth. "Quiet," she whispered. "There are people around that corner. You need to tell me where to go, cause after this turn our stealth is gone."

Pitch grimaced but he wasn't about to back down, "alright."

Silver grabbed him and shot into the air speeding through the hallway before the guards could even pull out their guns. After a few more corners and halls the alarm started going off overhead. Pitch recognized that the alarm would trigger a lockdown of the facility, their exit would be gone. "Make a hard left!" She banked into a hallway that ended in a large iron door and Pitch shouted, "through that door!" Silver swooped down and dropped him, continuing on to smash the door open.

Pitch ran past her mumbling, "you could have just opened it..." making a beeline for another door near a large metal tank. Silver heard footsteps closing in, "they're almost here!"

Pitch grabbed her arm and threw her into a large pipe, and she fell down onto a platform several feet below the door.

She looked up at him, "Pitch what are you-"

"The only thing I can." He slammed the door and locked it reaching for the lever next to it. He couldn't lose her, not her too. The only way he could keep her was by letting her go. He felt a tears form at the edge of his eyes, I hope you can be happy again, and he pulled the lever.

Silvers fading scream was the only thing he heard before being knocked unconscious by the fleet of guards.

The tube went from being vertical to sloping downwards, maybe a fun slide to some but not to Silver. She tried to dig her claws, tail, wings, pretty much anything, into the walls of the metal cylinder but it was too slick from what smelled like machinery oil. She had been sliding face first for what felt like forever, and it was really starting to piss her off, but when she saw a light at the end of the tunnel she didn't know wether she was relieved or frightened. Shooting out of the pipe like an arrow Silver immediately reared her wings to gain altitude, and she was glad she did.

Under her was massive heaps of scrap metal, some rusted some still shiny and new, all probably painful to land on...

She spun around hearing something clanging through the pipe. A flicker of hope told her it was Pitch but a small square falling out of the tube quickly snuffed out that hope. She heard a ticking sound coming from the object. " _Ya know that's probably not good..._ "

She hightailed it upwards to escape the canyon that served as those humans scrap heap. The ticking turned into a rapid beeping. "Oh shit" she breathed. Flying as fast as she could she passed the top of the canyon and darted to the side, narrowly escaping an explosion of fire and molten metal. She batted away the iron that fell and landed on her scales. She looked away spotting a building in the distance, "you idiot..." she snarled. Stirring up sand as she took off into the clouds she cursed, "now I've got to break in there and save your ass."

Pitch hurt, he hurt everywhere. When the guards found him aiding her escape they had been less than gentle. Knocking him out, throwing him against walls, a few bruises in the shapes of guns and fists, and chaining him up here in this cell. He sighed, "at least I can rot knowing that she's finally free..." Pitch hung his head on in shame, "I always knew I would die alone but never like this..."

"You know...," Pitch's head snapped up at her voice. Silver stepped into view, a small smile on her face, "..I used to think that too, and for a long time I believed it" she melted the lock on the cageband slid through the now open door. Kneeling down in front of him she continued, "it was one of the only the only things I believed in for a long time. It was all I thought about before you came along. We were both...alone..outcasts..pained souls searching for an end to the torture. And while we kept each other company to temporarily fill the void in our hearts, I never really realized what you came to mean to me until that day that those other humans attacked you." She reached up and placed her palm on his cheek, "when i had to harm you it hurt me more than anything I could imagine. I realized that, I had come to treasure you. The dragon side of me claimed you, to grant loyalty to and protect with my life, you're my treasure." She cupped his face with both hands, "and the human side of me, that side of me calls it love." Her eyes were sparkling with tears of joy and she quickly ripped open the chains he was in. She wrapped him in an embrace but tears quickly turned bitter when he didn't move."Pitch?" She whimpered.

He just kept staring at her.

Silver shrunk back in fear, "I-I'm sorry" The image of her claws marks on his chest flooded her mind. Tears were starting to run down her face and she squeezed her eyes shut, "I understand. I don't deserve any form of kindness because of hurting you like that."

She felt his hands grip her shoulders. Their eyes met and silver paled as she saw small tears at the edge of his eyes. Pitch pulled her into another embrace, "I was sure you wouldn't come back..."

She wrapped her arms around him, "I thought I'd never see you again."

Pitch hugged her tightly until he felt her tense up. "What? What's wrong?" he asked with panic lacing his voice.

"Someone's coming" Silver whispered. She flew up to the ceiling and dug her claws into the metal, "act like you're still chained."

Pitch put his hands behind his back just in time for a guard to enter the hallway.

He walked into Pitch's cell, "Who ya talkin to Black? Have you finally lost it?" He knelt down and grabbed pitch's chin, "you don't realize how fantastic this really is, you finally get to die! I'll be so glad when you're no longer waltzing around like you own the place. But it's sad" pitch wrenched away his chin and the guard stood up, "i won't get to watch you perish. Hmmm." He pulled out his gun, "let's change that."

Silver shot down from above and knocked the gun from his hand. The guard only had time to gasp before she wrapped a hand around his throat.

Spitting out the gun she smiled, "now now, no need for that. Just go to sleep." She increasingly squeezed harder until the guards' eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp. Silver dropped him to the floor and addressed Pitch's worried look. "Don't worry he's still alive. I'd never kill a person. Now let's go before more of them get here."

Pitch nodded and the two started running, sprinting through the hallways. Pitch turned a corner and was met by a group of guards but Silver jumped in and bathed the walls in her blue fire before they could unload any lead into his stomach. Pitch backed away from the blaze while she jumped in and made quick work of the lot of them. With a huge gust of her wings she doused the flame, "let's go!" she yelled.

Pitch ran after her, assuming the lead. He had an unsettling feeling in his gut. He was leading them to the only exit this place had, and he knew that

there would be an army of guns waiting for them. He swallowed hard as they sped down the hallway to the room that held the doorway to their freedom. Silver catapulted in front of Pitch and looked left and right rapidly her body tense as a compressed spring, but relaxing a bit when she saw no one. "I don't like this" she growled.

Pitch walked up next to her, "something's off..."

A large metal door dropped down from the door way and closed it off. They spun around as their exit was cut off and multiple sheets of metal shot up from the ground and up above them, closing at the top and trapping them in a large box of metal. Silver reared back to melt the walls but a large column of water shot into her face and slammed her back against the wall. She fell to the ground spluttering, trying desperately to remove the water from her lungs while the room started to fill with water from faucets on the floor and walls.

Pitch stood there terrified, " _I-I can't-I can't swim..."_ He couldn't move. It was absolute darkness in the box they were trapped in and it was quickly filling up with water that would surely bring his demise. The water was already up to his hips when a call for Silver was cut short by water cascading down overhead. He pressed his back against the wall, all feeling other than panic gone from his body. Desperately willing his eyes to see in the dark he looked around for her once more, the water now up to his chest. Pitch's miserable life flashed before his eyes as he took one last breath of precious air.

The water rose to over his head.

 _"Is this how it ends? I had hoped I could at least free her but it seems that I came up short, looks like now both of our wretched lives will come to an end. And just when I thought I had actually come to feel my heart again_ "

Pitch could feel his lungs start to burn as they reached their limit. He grabbed at his throat, some part of him thinking it would ease the pain. He couldn't tell if his vision was fading in the darkness but he could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness, that's when he felt something touch the back of his neck. He jerked away and silently screamed losing all the air he was holding onto, but before water could flood his mouth it was blocked.

Pitch felt it now. Her hand firm on the back of his neck, her arm wrapped around his waist, and her lips against his. She held him tightly against her, giving her air to him through the connection of this kiss. Pitch could feel his head clearing up and the fire in his lungs die down. Oh how he wanted to kiss back passionately. To taste her and drink in her essence for the first time. But that would have to wait. When the air flow stopped he closed his mouth to keep it all in, and when she pulled away he panicked and desperately closed his hand around hers. She grabbed the wrist of his hand in hers and pulled him up towards the top of the trap. He saw light filtering in from a hole in one of the corners of the box and water was being sucked into it. Silver swam up to it and forced it open wider until she pulled them into the current and out into the large room.

Pitch started coughing and gasping in air as soon as he hit the ground. Silver hit the ground as well and spun out on her stomach, sliding to a stop with only slightly labored breaths. "Pitch.." she lifted her head up, "why- why didn't you follow me up? I was calling you to swim to the top with me, but you just stood there. What happened?"

Pitch stared at the ground, biting his lip nervously.

Silver paled in realization, "Pitch...can you swim?"

Pitch shook his head solemnly, "no..I can't."

Sliver smiled warmly, "well, I'll teach you, ok?"

Pitch looked up, "I-" but a slow clapping cut him short.

They looked over at the small figure of Professor Clyde. He smirked knowingly, "well well well look at that you two escaped! Haha I thought you wouldn't have made it out alive! Hahahaha!" He quieted his laughing and looked at Silver, "and kudos to you my dear! Ah what was it? Silver?" he purred.

She snarled in return.

He waved a hand dismissively, "oh please just drop the act already. I know you can speak, so why don't you? Hm, maybe you're smart and know to keep that smart mouth shut in my presence otherwise there could be consequences." Silvers anger flared and she shot towards the small man, running head on in a full sprint. Clyde smiled and pulled out a small box with a single button on it, and pressed it; feeling all of the power in the world at his fingertips.

As soon as the little button was pressed Pitch realized they were totally, and utterly, screwed.

Silver stopped dead in her tracks and a pain filled howl filled the air. She fell to her knees with her hands clamped over her pointed ears, writhing and snarling in pain on the ground. The small professor oozed with satisfaction at the success of his device. "What's wrong my dear? Is this frequency too high for you? It's such a shame that your kind has such keen hearing, it's one of the best things we can use against you."

During the commotion Pitch had snuck away for cover behind the large box they were trapped in not to long ago. He was desperately trying to think of a way out of this mess, but without Silver or a gun he was next to useless.

Silver whined and cried, sounds like a lion cub being strangled forming in her throat, all while Clyde was inching closer to her as she vainly tried to back away.

"Look at you! Finally at my feet where you belong, with your pathetic little life in my hands." He tried to stomp on her tail but she swung it out of his reach and whipped it towards him so that the spikes on her tail were sent flying like arrows promising death. Clyde jumped out of the way and Pitch ducked behind another side of the box; the spikes embedding themselves in the metal. His eyes lit up with an idea, he would finally be useful in this escape.

Clyde growled with displeasure as he turned his attention back to silver, who was trying desperately to back away while her body still writhed in pain.

He reeled back his boot and drove it into her midsection, forcing a gasp of pain from her lips. "Wench! Trying to defy me when you know you have no chance." A devilish smile spread across his face as he turned a knob and increased the intensity of the sound.

"N-AAAHH HA AHA! Nnn sto-ha-hahp..." She cried out and convulsed in pain, her eyes screwed shut and her claws raked down her scalp.

Professor Clyde roared in triumph, "yes! Scream out in agony! Just as my father did when your filthy species murdered him!"

Silver managed to reel herself in to speak, "wh-what are you t-talking about?"

Clyde answered with his voice low and dangerous, "when my father and his reasearch team went to excavate the Silver Isles they stumbled upon the primal beasts that you call your kind. Without causing so much as a disturbed grain of sand he was ferociously ripped apart!" Clyde reeled back and landed a kick square in her gut, sending Silver skidding across the floor. "YOU TOOK HIM AWAY FROM ME! MY FATHER IS GONE BECAUSE OF YOU! I WAS ALONE FOR YEARS BECAUSE MY DAD NEVER CAME BACK!" Silver looked up at him with one eye, the other still screwed shut in pain. "I waited..for so long...just a boy..all alone with no family and not a friend in the world to call his." His eyes grew dark as he pulled out a gun and aimed it between her eyes. "And now," he chuckled lightly, "I'm gonna take your life. Just like you took mine." He laid his hand on the trigger and Silver braced herself. "A life for a life right? Isn't that how it goes?"

He cackled but was cut short by Pitch blindsiding the man, knocking him over and sending the little box flying. By the time Professor Clyde managed to recover and stand up Pitch was already skewering the device with the spikes he had collected. Driving them into it he tore the contraption apart, and by the time Clyde could realize that his machine was broken it was too late.

Silver lunged at him, her claws wrapping around his throat and lifting him up into the air. With both the gun and his device no longer in his possession the small professor resorted to the only thing he could against a creature of her strength, he began to beg, "Please, please don't kill me. I-I don't want to die."

Silvers eyes didn't soften as she brought his face close to hers, speaking low and threatening. "Your father came upon our lands with guns and many other weapons, he had no peaceful intentions in the slightest. He died because he was trying to kill all of us, and he indeed just about wiped us out. My father died trying to PROTECT his family and clan. He died with honor and yours with shame. Look I'm sorry that your father was ripped away from you, but don't forget that he ripped away all of my family as well. We all, " she shot a look at Pitch and returned to Clyde with a stern one, "know what it's like to be alone; without anyone to love or to love us back. But that is no reason to take someone's life." She dropped him abruptly, "I'm only half human and I have more humanity than that."

She started walking toward Pitch who smiled at her lightly. " _She never ceases to amaze me."_ Hearing shuffling and turned his attention towards Clyde, he was running for the alarm. "Silver the alarm! Stop him!"

With slitted pupils she turned on a dime and bounded after him. Inches from pulling the alarm she crashed into him, curling around him like a snake. Silver hissed and smashed her head into his, knocking him out in an instant. Laying him down gently she turned back to Pitch, "no more delays. We're leaving now." Pitch nodded and started running for the door, with Silver hot on his tail, hearts pumping with adrenaline. Silver grabbed the bottom of the door and started lifting. The ringing sound of the alarm accompanied her growling of effort as all of her strength was used to lift the door, and slowly it started give way and bend upwards in the middle. Once it was high enough Silver grabbed his hand and ducked under the metal, tearing through the desert sand as freedom finally filled their lungs. They ran until they were a safe distance away from that retched building before Silver grabbed Pitch and took off into the air. Pitch panicked and latched on to her, holding her tightly, and she chuckled as they continued to soar through the sky.

A few hours passed until Silver finally had to land and rest. They were now on a small island in the middle of the ocean, an island filled with rocky caves and shallow pools of clear water. She set Pitch down gently onto the ground and slumped onto a smooth rock. "Just" she huffed, "just give me a few hours to rest and then I'll take you to any city you want. I've got plenty of ways to get in and out of human areas unseen and I'll make sure you're completely safe."

Pitch felt his stomach tighten, " _out?"_ He swallowed hard, "where will you go?"

She shrugged, "mythical creatures have small towns all over the world. I'll get by just fine, don't worry about me."

Pitch's eyes fell to the floor, it was now or never, "in-in the water...you...you kissed me. Why?"

"You were drowning, so I gave you air."

He looked up at her with sad eyes, "is that all it was?"

Silver's expression became unreadable, "I cannot deny that I have strong feelings for you, but I will not put you in a situation of being forced to hide from human civilization with me because of my own selfish desires. I am doing what is best for you, I want you to be happy again."

He took in a small breath, "but- what if...I wanted..to be with you?"

"Pitch stop. Listen to yourself. If you came with me it would be threatening your safety. Most creatures like me are less than fond of humans. You

would be in serious danger and I can't let that happen." She felt herself start to loose her calm tone and waver into the sadness she felt. Silver turned herself away from Pitch, "please just go. I'll-I'll be just fine."

He walked up behind her and pulled her into his arms, being careful of her wings. "And what if I couldn't be happy without you?"

She weakly tried to pull away, "then you'd be a liar and a fool."

He grabbed her shoulders and turned her around, "and you know that neither of those statements are true."

"Pitch you don't-"

"Want you? Yes I do." Silver opened her mouth to speak again but Pitch grabbed her chin and placed his thumb over her lips. He slid his other hand down to her lower back and pulled her closer. "And I know that I'd be perfectly safe with you by my side so I would really appreciate it if you would stop making excuses to keep yourself from me and your own happiness. Because I want you, and what I want I get. So please, just shut up so I can do this." He lifted her chin and leaned down to her, pressing his lips against her.

Silvers eyes widened, to her their first kiss didn't count as anything, she had just done it to save him. She hesitantly kissed him back, this being her first.

Pitch released her chin and moved his hand to the back of her head, holding her in place as he softly slid his tongue into her mouth. A hesitant whine escaped her and Pitch smirked. He explored her mouth and curled the tip of his tongue around one of her fangs. any type of resistance quickly melted as she succumbed to his touch with a small smile. Satisfied with her submission to him Pitch pulled away and smiled. Silver looked up at him silently, her expression uncertain.

Pitch's smile curled into a smirk, "who's the liar now?"

"Shut up."


End file.
